cm23uoc
Old Man with a Hat
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I think we finally have a D.B. Cooper Connection in this thread.
Jer is about as crazy as that D.B. Cooper guy.
For Sale 1990 Chrysler/Maserati Turbo Convertible, D.B. Cooper connection
- Thread starter tbm3fan
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I think we finally have a D.B. Cooper Connection in this thread.
Jer is about as crazy as that D.B. Cooper guy.
MarPar
Meat Man with a Hat
I think we finally have a D.B. Cooper Connection in this thread.
Jer is about as ballsy as that D.B. Cooper guy.
amended
1Fury1
Slab Side Slacker
I had a flight instructor back in 84 who's name was Dennis Cooper. Everyone said he was the real DB.
Santa My Friend. One of the many, many differencez between DB Cooper and me iz that he jumped out of ah perfectly good airplane. And me? You couldn't pack enough people into ah C130 to push me out the tail, JerI think we finally have a D.B. Cooper Connection in this thread.
Jer is about as crazy as that D.B. Cooper guy.
fury fan
Senior Member
A guy returned home from airborne training. He told his buddies he was reluctant to jump from the plane, so the instructor said if he didn't jump he was gonna stick a baton up his backside. One of his buddies asked 'so you jumped?'
'Just a bit at first', he replied.
'Just a bit at first', he replied.
MarPar
Meat Man with a Hat
Carmine
Old Man with a Hat
For those who are interested, here's the real story on Chrysler's TC by Maserati, not the tripe written by a bunch of old hippies and basement dwellers on TTAC. I've actually read the product planning memos which still exist in a dark corner of a Detroit warehouse...
There are of course people who work in product planning who's main job is to keep eyes on what the competition is doing. 'Round about 1984, rumors were flying that Cadillac was going to build a two-seater to compete with the Mercedes SL series. It would have an Italian connection, to help get over coastal buyer’s anti-Detroit hump. Concurrently, Chrysler had just introduced the internal code “G24” 2+2 Laser and (Dodge) Daytona coupes. The Chrysler Laser differed from the Daytona only in the rear spoiler treatment; it mostly existed to give Chrysler dealers something to sell (since few were paired with Dodge dealers). There was always a plan to further differentiate the Chrysler version, but the budget didn’t exist for another set of body tooling.
Lee Iacocca, probably keeping the rumors of an Italian-influenced Caddy in mind, decided to call upon his friend Alejandro de Tomaso (of Ford-powered de Tomaso Pantera fame) with the idea of doing a limited run of “halo” roadsters, based from the Daytona FWD platform (At this time, Alejandro was running Maserati. ) It does seem that Iacocca had a real thing for roadsters, because I’ve also read product planning notes for a 2-seater targa-top version of the ’81-’83 Imperial, which obviously never saw production.
The original plan called for the Q-coupe (eventually given the awkward TC by Maserati name) to debut 18 months before a new aero-inspired LeBaron coupe/convertible 2+2. The thinking was that a similar appearance to the more exclusive TC, would add some “pizazz” to the more pedestrian and backseat-equipped LeBaron. While the overall look was similar, the cars shared nothing more than (certain) powertrains and electrical architecture. All of the sheet metal and trim was different, as was the wheelbase, suspensions, brakes and even the unseen floorpans.
Well Italian boutique car-builders have never been known for their ability to meet deadlines… Something to do with 6 weeks of annual vacation and 3-hour pasta lunches, I’d imagine. The first examples produced were deemed “unsalable” by Chrysler executives because of fit/finish issues. Meanwhile, work on the LeBaron pressed forward and the car was ready for a 1987 model year introduction. The convertible even paced the Indy 500. The need for a halo car no longer seemed a priority and the TC became a back-burner project. Engineers were called back to Detroit and reassigned elsewhere in the company. Many of them eventually became part of a much more successful roadster project done in-house, utilizing a V-10 engine breathed on by Lamborghini.
But the TC project was too far along to simply cut bait. A skeleton crew of Chrysler people stayed behind to try and create a salable product and salvage some of the investment. One of the measures taken was dropping the idea of an exclusive 16 valve engine co-developed with Maserati (and later Cosworth), as this project had also fallen behind. This left a standard Chrysler turbo engine, paired to an automatic transmission which made the turbo good for about 500 RPM of fun before it up-shifted. Eventually the 16 valve version appeared, but this was well after the early press had panned the car… Now a $30,000 car with an appearance similar to a $15,000 car that had been in production for 2 years. The TC finally appeared in US showrooms for 1989 but it’s doubtful that many sold anywhere near their sticker price, further lessening their status.
So where does this leave the TC today? Nowhere in terms of value, but taken just as a “car” and ignoring the market flop there is nothing at all wrong with owning one. It’s a fun piece of history with an over-the-top, all-leather interior. Mechanical parts are dirt cheap and it’s far more reliable than any true Italian car.
I picked up a very pampered example locally (with a mis-installed timing belt) for under a grand. I fixed it and enjoyed the car for a few summers, even driving it in local parades. I toyed with the idea of swapping in a 5-speed from a Daytona, and even the idea of converting it to an electric car! (You can find drivetrains pretty cheap if you know where to look.) However, good sense and the need to work on my ’70 Fury prevailed and I sold it this summer.
…but part of my willingness to do so is because I know where a 16v example sits inside a local garage. Basically untouched and waiting for me to drop by with some cash.
Here's a shot of mine with a much larger ancestor!
There are of course people who work in product planning who's main job is to keep eyes on what the competition is doing. 'Round about 1984, rumors were flying that Cadillac was going to build a two-seater to compete with the Mercedes SL series. It would have an Italian connection, to help get over coastal buyer’s anti-Detroit hump. Concurrently, Chrysler had just introduced the internal code “G24” 2+2 Laser and (Dodge) Daytona coupes. The Chrysler Laser differed from the Daytona only in the rear spoiler treatment; it mostly existed to give Chrysler dealers something to sell (since few were paired with Dodge dealers). There was always a plan to further differentiate the Chrysler version, but the budget didn’t exist for another set of body tooling.
Lee Iacocca, probably keeping the rumors of an Italian-influenced Caddy in mind, decided to call upon his friend Alejandro de Tomaso (of Ford-powered de Tomaso Pantera fame) with the idea of doing a limited run of “halo” roadsters, based from the Daytona FWD platform (At this time, Alejandro was running Maserati. ) It does seem that Iacocca had a real thing for roadsters, because I’ve also read product planning notes for a 2-seater targa-top version of the ’81-’83 Imperial, which obviously never saw production.
The original plan called for the Q-coupe (eventually given the awkward TC by Maserati name) to debut 18 months before a new aero-inspired LeBaron coupe/convertible 2+2. The thinking was that a similar appearance to the more exclusive TC, would add some “pizazz” to the more pedestrian and backseat-equipped LeBaron. While the overall look was similar, the cars shared nothing more than (certain) powertrains and electrical architecture. All of the sheet metal and trim was different, as was the wheelbase, suspensions, brakes and even the unseen floorpans.
Well Italian boutique car-builders have never been known for their ability to meet deadlines… Something to do with 6 weeks of annual vacation and 3-hour pasta lunches, I’d imagine. The first examples produced were deemed “unsalable” by Chrysler executives because of fit/finish issues. Meanwhile, work on the LeBaron pressed forward and the car was ready for a 1987 model year introduction. The convertible even paced the Indy 500. The need for a halo car no longer seemed a priority and the TC became a back-burner project. Engineers were called back to Detroit and reassigned elsewhere in the company. Many of them eventually became part of a much more successful roadster project done in-house, utilizing a V-10 engine breathed on by Lamborghini.
But the TC project was too far along to simply cut bait. A skeleton crew of Chrysler people stayed behind to try and create a salable product and salvage some of the investment. One of the measures taken was dropping the idea of an exclusive 16 valve engine co-developed with Maserati (and later Cosworth), as this project had also fallen behind. This left a standard Chrysler turbo engine, paired to an automatic transmission which made the turbo good for about 500 RPM of fun before it up-shifted. Eventually the 16 valve version appeared, but this was well after the early press had panned the car… Now a $30,000 car with an appearance similar to a $15,000 car that had been in production for 2 years. The TC finally appeared in US showrooms for 1989 but it’s doubtful that many sold anywhere near their sticker price, further lessening their status.
So where does this leave the TC today? Nowhere in terms of value, but taken just as a “car” and ignoring the market flop there is nothing at all wrong with owning one. It’s a fun piece of history with an over-the-top, all-leather interior. Mechanical parts are dirt cheap and it’s far more reliable than any true Italian car.
I picked up a very pampered example locally (with a mis-installed timing belt) for under a grand. I fixed it and enjoyed the car for a few summers, even driving it in local parades. I toyed with the idea of swapping in a 5-speed from a Daytona, and even the idea of converting it to an electric car! (You can find drivetrains pretty cheap if you know where to look.) However, good sense and the need to work on my ’70 Fury prevailed and I sold it this summer.
…but part of my willingness to do so is because I know where a 16v example sits inside a local garage. Basically untouched and waiting for me to drop by with some cash.
Here's a shot of mine with a much larger ancestor!
Last edited:
commando1
Old Man with a Hat
You are obviously in "upper managent", eh?
Carmine
Old Man with a Hat
No, but you would be surprised how many members of "upper management" will tell you stories and give you access to cool places if they know you've got car-fever. Not all of them are bean-counters.
Stan your Canadian is showing....eh?
commando1
Old Man with a Hat
That was a Cliff Claven "eh" , as in, "Eh, Normie. . ? ".
I speak Bostonese, the correct English.
All coming back to me now...eh
tbm3fan
Old Man with a Hat
Your comment about jumping out of a perfectly good airplane was a comment I heard 1 month ago. I was up in Santa Rosa to do some eye exams. During the day in walks a resident wearing jacket and hat with the 101st Airborne patch on it. I quickly recognize the fellow from previous visits when he would be wearing his uniform around the hallways. His brother is the one who told him that he was crazy for jumping out of a perfectly good plane. His brother was in the 1st Marine Division and if you know your history then you know where he was. Guadalcanal. On the other hand my resident jumped on D-Day, Market Garden and was at Bastogne. Memory is somewhat repetitive, but he is walking and doing quite well for 91 1/2 years old. My aide mentioned that I was falling behind to which I said one hour is not enough to fully talk with this man.
Similar reaction by the 90 year old sailor wearing a DE-339 John C. Butler Navy hat. Asked what time frame he was on the ship at which he told me April 1944 (plank holder) till the end of the war. I said then you were part of Taffy 3 at The Battle of Samar at which he couldn't believe anyone even knew his ship. He manned a 40mm mount during the battle to which I said there wasn't much you could do with that. He said he had never been so scared in his life.
fury fan
Senior Member
Classic example of throwing good money after bad!
And I agree with that 100%. With a little upgrading to put it in the vein of the black GTC Lebaron shown earlier, I think one of these would be a great cheap toy to have. Get rid of or mask the elements that make it look the LeB. Wheels and steering wheel changes would be a huge help.
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